Incomprehensible to deny same-sex marriage

Marriage is different from every other sort of relationship. My husband and I have been married 26 years and both sets of our parents were married for more than 50 years.

I believe the commitment of marriage creates a deeper, stronger relationship than just living together. Through marriage we link our lives to another person forever. We commit to be responsible for each other and take the place as the most important person in each other’s lives.

Marriage is also a step in which we invite the rest of the world to view our relationship differently. Our friends, families, churches and government all recognize the difference between a live-in relationship and a marriage and the higher level of commitment marriage signifies.

This commitment is good for our families, community and country — creating stable homes and communities.

That is why it is incomprehensible to me we continue to deny same-sex couples the right to marry.

How does our society benefit when we deny a couple the chance to love and honor each other, through sickness and health, richer and poorer, until death?

Why do we deny them the opportunity to make a lifelong commitment to another person and to participate fully in the privileges and responsibilities marriage brings?

By not allowing same-sex couples to marry, we are denying the depth and breadth of their relationships. We are saying their relationships are different, less meaningful and less worthy.

We marginalize their relationship, their love and their commitment to each other. And precisely because we have denied them the right to marry, we view their relationships as transitory and temporary.

It is a vicious, no-win cycle.

I look forward to a time when any two people who have been lucky enough to find their soul mate will be able to celebrate that by making the greatest of commitments to each other through the institution of marriage.

As for Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, they have stated they would love to marry, but will only do so when all people have the right to marry. Here’s to hoping they will be able to marry soon.